Are people forced to do their deeds or are they the creators of their deeds?

Muhammad ibn Ibrahim reported that Imam Ali (a.) said:“As for the answer to the followers of compulsion and they are the ones who claimed that the deeds are merely metaphorically attributed to the servants, not in reality and that they are in reality merely from God, not from the servants and they interpret for this the verses from the scripture of God whose meaning they did not know, such as His word: “If God had willed, they would not have associated.” (6:107) So those who are in the right answered them and said to them: “Your statement nullifies the reward and punishment of attributing your deeds to God. He is exalted above what they describe, and how does He punish a creature for a deed that is not from Him?” God said:”God does not burden a soul with anything except what it is able to do. To its own belongs what it has earned, and to its own belongs what it has earned.” (2:286) This is not possible except by the reality of its deed and His word: “Whoever then does the weight of a dust of good will see it, and whoever does the weight of a dust of evil will see it.” (99:7-8) And His word: “Every soul is liable for what it has acquired.” (74:38) And His word: “You will certainly be questioned about what you used to do.” (16:93) And His word: “Thus We answer each one for his sin.” Until His word: “And not God used to wrong them, but they used to wrong themselves.” (29:40) And the same occurs frequently in the Scripture of God, thus nullifying what they claimed and attributed to God, namely, that He commands His creatures to do what they are incapable of doing, or forbids them to do what they neither exhibit execution nor acquisition for, and another grouping acted against them in their statement: “We create the deeds when we do them and in them there is neither execution nor acquisition, nor a desire, nor a will and it will be what the devil wills and it will not be, which he does not will.” Thus, in their statement (Tafwid) they opposed the followers of compulsion (Jabr) and claimed that they are creators together with God and they referred to His word: “Blessed be God, the best of creators.” (23:14) Therefore, they said: “His word “Blessed be God, the Best of Creators” proves that there are creators besides Him.” So they were ignorant about this statement and did not know what is meant by creation and how many meanings it has.” Hereupon they asked him (a.) about it and said to him: “Does God leave to the servants that, which they do?” He said: “God is more excellent and exalted than that.” One said: “Does He, then, force them to do what they do?” He said: “God is more just than forcing them to do a deed, whereupon He punishes them for it.” One said: “Is there a third position between these two positions?” Then He said: “Yes, as between heaven and earth.” So one said: “What is it?” He said: “A mystery from among the mysteries of God.” [Bihar-ul-Anwar of Al-Majlisi, Volume 90, Page 85 – 86, Hadith 1]

أبو عبد الله محمد بن إبراهيم بن جعفر النعماني عن علي بن أبي طالب عليهما السلام قال: وأما الرد على المجبرة وهم الذين زعموا أن الافعال إنما هي منسوبة إلى العباد، مجازا لا حقيقة وإنما حقيقتها لله لا للعباد وتأولوا في ذلك آيات من كتاب الله تعالى لم يعرفوا معناها كما في قوله تعالى ولو شاء الله ما أشركوا فرد عليهم أهل الحق فقالوا لهم: إن في قولكم ذلك بطلان الثواب والعقاب إذا نسبتم أفعالكم إلى الله، تعالى عما يصفون، وكيف يعاقب مخلوقا على غير فعل منه قال الله تعالى لا يكلف الله نفسا إلا وسعها لها ما كسبت وعليها ما اكتسبت لا يجوز أن يكون إلا على الحقيقة لفعلها وقوله تعالى فمن يعمل مثقال ذرة خيرا يره ومن يعمل مثقال ذرة شرا يره وقوله سبحانه: كل نفس بما كسبت رهينة وقوله لتسئلن عما كنتم تعملون وقوله تعالى فكلا أخذنا بذنبه إلى قوله: وما كان الله ليظلمهم ولكن كانوا أنفسهم يظلمون ومثل هذا كثير في كتاب الله تعالى وفيه بطلان ما ادعوه ونسبوه إلى الله تعالى أن يأمر خلقه بما لا يقدرون أو ينهاهم عما ليس فيهم صنع ولا اكتساب وخالفهم فرقة أخرى في قولهم فقالوا: إن الافعال نحن نخلقها عند فعلنا لها، وليس فيها صنع ولا اكتساب ولا مشية ولا إرادة، ويكون ما يشاء إبليس ولا يكون ما لا يشاء، فضادوا المجبرة في قولهم وادعوا أنهم خلاقون مع الله، واحتجوا بقوله: تبارك الله أحسن الخالقين فقالوا: قوله: تبارك الله أحسن الخالقين يثبت خلاقين غيره، فجهلوا هذه اللفظة، ولم يعرفوا معنى الخلق وعلى كم وجه هو فسئل عليه السلام عن ذلك وقيل له: هل فوض الله تعالى إلى العباد ما يفعلون فقال: الله أعز واجل من ذلك، قيل: فهل يجبرهم على ما يفعلون قال: الله سبحانه أعدل من أن يجبرهم على فعل ثم يعذبهم عليه قيل: أبين الهاتين المنزلتين منزلة ثالثة فقال: نعم كما بين السماء والأرض، فقيل: ما هي قال: سر من أسرار الله

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Narrations about the best of the creators are [Here!]